Go to Content Go to Navigation Go to Navigation Go to Site Search Homepage

HHS Secretary Refuses to Guarantee Patient Protections

Washington, DC — Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PPFA) is dismayed at U.S. Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Michael Leavitt’s refusal to guarantee patient protections as his office moves forward with a proposed regulation that seriously jeopardizes women’s health. In a meeting today, Senators Hillary Clinton and Patty Murray expressed grave concern over protections for women’s health care and asked Leavitt what changes he would make in the final rule to ensure that patients do not lose access to health information or services when a health care provider or volunteer refuses to provide them, and he failed to respond with any concrete assurances.

“This regulation unconscionably ignores a patient’s right to receive the critical health care services and information she deserves,” said PPFA President Cecile Richards. “Our concern is that women going to their local hospital or doctor’s office can no longer trust that they will receive the information they need to make the health care decision that is right for them.”

This proposed regulation would allow providers, based on their personal biases, to withhold both services and the critical information women need to make fully informed decisions about their health care. It leaves the term “abortion” undefined and open for interpretation to include birth control pills and other common types of contraception. With 98 percent of women using birth control at some time during their lives, this rule could directly affect health care access and services for 42 million women in America.

The growing opposition to this regulation is overwhelming.

  • More than 65,000 Planned Parenthood supporters have filed comments online during the public comment period.
     
  • A bipartisan coalition of governors and attorneys general are lining up in opposition to this regulation because of the threat it poses to existing state protections for health care access. This group includes Governors Rod Blagojevich (D-IL), Chris Gregoire (D-WA), M. Jodi Rell (R-CT), Edward Rendell (D-PA), and others who plan to submit comments before the deadline.
     
  • More than 100 members of the U.S. Senate and the U.S. House of Representatives have joined a growing list of elected officials who are filing comments opposing this regulation.

The HHS proposed regulation is now posted in the federal register and a 30-day public comment period is closing in on us and will end at midnight on September 25, 2008. Comments can be submitted through Planned Parenthood here, or by sending an e-mail directly to HHS at [email protected].

 

###

Planned Parenthood is the nation’s leading provider and advocate of high-quality, affordable health care for women, men, and young people, as well as the nation’s largest provider of sex education. With more than 700 health centers across the country, Planned Parenthood organizations serve all patients with care and compassion, with respect and without judgment. Through health centers, programs in schools and communities, and online resources, Planned Parenthood is a trusted source of reliable health information that allows people to make informed health decisions. We do all this because we care passionately about helping people lead healthier lives.

Source

Planned Parenthood Federation of America

Contact

Diane Quest, 202-973-4851
Tait Sye, 202-973-4840

Published

September 23, 2008

Updated

May 14, 2014

Español

This website uses cookies

Planned Parenthood cares about your data privacy. We and our third-party vendors use cookies and other tools to collect, store, monitor, and analyze information about your interaction with our site to improve performance, analyze your use of our sites and assist in our marketing efforts. You may opt out of the use of these cookies and other tools at any time by visiting Cookie Settings. By clicking “Allow All Cookies” you consent to our collection and use of such data, and our Terms of Use. For more information, see our Privacy Notice.

Cookie Settings

Planned Parenthood cares about your data privacy. We and our third-party vendors, use cookies, pixels, and other tracking technologies to collect, store, monitor, and process certain information about you when you access and use our services, read our emails, or otherwise engage with us. The information collected might relate to you, your preferences, or your device. We use that information to make the site work, analyze performance and traffic on our website, to provide a more personalized web experience, and assist in our marketing efforts. We also share information with our social media, advertising, and analytics partners. You can change your default settings according to your preference. You cannot opt-out of required cookies when utilizing our site; this includes necessary cookies that help our site to function (such as remembering your cookie preference settings). For more information, please see our Privacy Notice.

Marketing

On

We use online advertising to promote our mission and help constituents find our services. Marketing pixels help us measure the success of our campaigns.

Performance

On

We use qualitative data, including session replay, to learn about your user experience and improve our products and services.

Analytics

On

We use web analytics to help us understand user engagement with our website, trends, and overall reach of our products.